| 22. Linguistic Exegesis The verse opens with vayomer {וַיֹּאמֶר | way-yōʾmer} ‘and he said’, a wayyiqtol form that introduces a new divine speech act. The subject Yahweh {יְהוָה | Yə-hō-wāh} precedes el-Mosheh {אֶל־מֹשֶׁה | ʾel-mō-šeh} ‘to Moses’, setting the communicative frame. Within quotation, koh tomar {כֹּה תֹאמַר | kōh tō-mar} functions as a commissioning formula directing Moses as intermediary. The phrase el-benei Yisrael {אֶל־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל | ʾel-bə-nê yiś-rā-ʾēl} specifies the covenant recipients. The sequence atem reitem {אַתֶּם רְאִיתֶם | ʾat-tem rə-ʾî-tem}, with the pronoun before the verb, heightens emphasis on personal eyewitness testimony. Conjunction ki {כִּי | kî} introduces the explanatory clause, in which fronted min-hashamayim {מִן־הַשָּׁמַיִם | min-haš-šā-ma-yim} highlights the heavenly origin before dibarti {דִּבַּרְתִּי | dib-bar-tî}, underscoring divine authority. The final immakhem {עִמָּכֶם | ʿim-mā-ḵem} emphasizes relational closeness. This layered structure of narrative frame, commissioning, and explanatory emphasis is preserved in translation. |